Apple rolls out iOS 17.2 update with new Journal app

Apple has released the iOS 17.2 update with new features, enhancements, and bug fixes for iPhone users. The update includes many new features, including the new Journal app, spatial video recording, action button improvements, and more.

Journal is a new app that enables users to create and write about their key moments and social events and include photos, videos, audio recordings, and locations to create memories. Journal uses on-device machine learning to provide personalized recommendations that can motivate users to make Journals.

“We are excited to bring the benefits of journaling to more people. Journal makes it easy to preserve rich and powerful memories and practice gratitude by intelligently curating information that is personal to the user, right from their iPhone. And we’re making it possible for other journaling apps to offer the same personalized suggestions while maintaining the highest level of privacy,” said Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing.

Moreover, Apple says Journal entries are encrypted when the iPhone is locked with a passcode, and users can also enable secondary authentication to lock the Journal app with their device passcode, Face ID, or Touch ID. Further, users can store Journal entries in iCloud and access them across Apple devices. Journal entries stored in iCloud are end-to-end encrypted, and no one else can access them except the user.

Here is the full iOS 17.2 changelog:

Journal

• Journal is a new app that lets you write about the small moments and big events in your life so you can practise gratitude and improve your well-being
• Journaling suggestions make it easy to remember your experiences by intelligently grouping your outings, photos, workouts, and more into moments you can add to your journal
• Filters let you quickly find bookmarked entries or show entries with attachments so you can revisit and reflect on key moments in your life
• Scheduled notifications help you keep a consistent journaling practice by reminding you to write on the days and time you choose
• Option to lock your journal using Touch ID or Face ID
• iCloud sync keeps your journal entries safe and encrypted on iCloud

Action Button

• Translate option for the Action button on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max to quickly translate phrases or have a conversation with someone in another language

Camera

• Spatial video lets you capture video on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max so you can relive your memories in three dimensions on Apple Vision Pro
• Improved Telephoto camera focusing speed when capturing small, faraway objects on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max

Messages

• Catch-up arrow lets you easily jump to your first unread message in a conversation by tapping the arrow visible in the top-right corner
• Add sticker option in the context menu lets you add a sticker directly to a bubble
• Memoji updates include the ability to adjust the body shape of any Memoji
• Contact Key Verification provides automatic alerts and Contact Verification Codes to help verify that people facing extraordinary digital threats are messaging only with the people they intend to

Weather

• Precipitation amounts help you stay on top of rain and snow conditions for a given day over the next 10 days
• New widgets let you choose from next-hour precipitation, daily forecast, sunrise and sunset times, and current conditions such as Air Quality, Feels Like, and wind speed
• Wind map snapshot helps you quickly assess wind patterns and access the animated wind map overlay to prepare for forecast wind conditions for the next 24 hours
• Interactive moon calendar lets you easily visualize the phase of the moon on any day for the next month

This update also includes the following improvements and bug fixes:

• AirDrop improvements including expanded contact sharing options and the ability to share boarding passes, cinema tickets, and other eligible passes by bringing two iPhones together
• Favorite Songs Playlist in Apple Music lets you quickly get back to the songs you mark as favorites
• Use Listening History in Apple Music can be disabled in a Focus so music you listen to does not appear in Recently Played or influence your recommendations
• A new Digital Clock Widget lets you quickly catch a glimpse of the time on your Home Screen and while in StandBy
• Enhanced AutoFill identifies fields in PDFs and other forms, enabling you to populate them with information such as names and addresses from your contacts
• New keyboard layouts provide support for 8 Sámi languages
• Sensitive Content Warning for stickers in Messages prevents you from being unexpectedly shown a sticker containing nudity
• Qi2 charger support for all iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 models
• Fixes an issue that may prevent wireless charging in certain vehicles

Availability

Apple iOS 17.2 update is available for compatible iPhone devices. Users can open the Settings app on their iPhones and go to the Software Update page to download and install the latest update.